"We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop." ~ Blessed Mother Teresa
I’ve been meaning to post a list of goals for quite some time now, and am finally getting around to it for this blogging challenge. Yay for kicking procrastination outta here!
Of course, your goals totally depend on where you are in your life. Mine are rather varied, and specific to my Catholic college life. I know writing these out will help me be on top of things and accountable this school year when I look back on them.
These are things I’m going to work at this next school year in no particular order:
Cut down my non-school-related computer time to 1/2 hours or less on weekdays.
Find a morning routine that works and stick with it. Include prayer, work out, shower, and breakfast before 9am classes.
Exercise a few times a week and eat as healthily as I can (haha with caf food).
Get enough sleep. This means going to bed by 11pm on school nights.
Go to Mass 3 times during the week.
Go to adoration once a week.
Go to confession once a month.
Pray and sidewalk counsel outside abortion clinics most (hopefully all) Saturdays.
Read at least 4 non-school books (2 per semester, some Catholic).
Treat my days like work days. Be on and going from when I get up (around 7am) to 5pm so I can have time in the evening to relax and spend time with people.
Write 5 articles a month for Live Action.
Write 3 shorter blog posts on here each week (including 7QT and WIWS).
Find a professional pro-life job for next summer.
Babysit around Atchison.
Think about writing a book.
Meet lots of new people.
Find creative ways to save & make money for college.
I’ll plan to post a monthly update on my goals to make sure I keep myself accountable. How cool will it be to look back and see how far I’ll have come?!?!
This is what I’ll tell myself when I feel like procrastinating
P.S. I’m sure new goal ideas will come to mind, so I’ll just edit them in when the time comes.
Some people can relate pretty much everything back to their favorite tv show or book series. Me? I can relate most things to the pro-life movement. Why? It’s my passion. It’s what I read about, it’s what I work for, and it’s what I think about quite a bit of the time. Of course I don’t spend my life consumed by it, but it is my cause. How did I get here? I noticed recently that I don’t write many things about my personal life on here. So today (and this week) I decided to start sharing more of that with you.
I found my cause a couple years ago, but it happened slowly.
Growing up, pro-life issues were not things I knew much of anything about or really talked about. At all. I do remember going to some sort of pro-life rally or protest in Sacramento when I was around 9, but I don’t remember what it was for. I do clearly remember seeing graphic abortion signs, and to this day know which one in particular people were carrying.
Fast forward to January 2011 when I went to my first Walk for Life. It was an experience unlike anything I had ever been to. It was inspiring and moving. I had never had the experience of being part of a movement like that – something bigger than myself. It’s hard to describe. To know that you are walking for a cause, for the truth, with thousand of other people? That’s pretty powerful. To this day, going to marches and pro-life rallies never ceases to inspire me and sometimes move me to tears. That day I think something was planted in the back of my mind.
January 2011 is also when I got my Facebook account and shortly after found Live Action and Life News which I started reading. My eyes were opened to a whole new world I had known absolutely nothing about.
I was working for Sears at the time, and quit that job in June 2011 after a terrible experience (a whole other story). I didn’t know what I was going to do, and needed a job. I applied to the usual – fast food and restaurants – but didn’t get anything. I got to the fall and just decided to wait and see what would happen. I would like to say that I had a moment when I just threw it in God’s hands, but I don’t really remember. Something better was in the works…
In the fall of 2011 someone I know introduced me to someone who introduced me to people at Live Action. The rest, you could say, is history.
I started working for Live Action in October, and it all snowballed. I went to the International Pro-Life Youth Conference in November 2011, wrote my first blog post after that, and later started writing for Live Action. Now I’ve worked for a couple different pregnancy centers, and multiple pro-life organizations.
This all happened in the span of a couple years, and let me tell you: I could never have imagined being this uber pro-lifer. Just a few years ago, I knew nothing about abortion and related topics. But everything fell into perfect place. And it’s not because I planned for this to happen.
In college I’ve met many different kinds of people, but one thing I’ve noticed is that not too many of them are extremely passionate about anything in particular. They come to college to get a degree, and la la la. They don’t really know what they want to do. I’ve noticed this about all sorts of people in other aspects of my life as well.
I don’t get this.
As someone who feels rather strongly about pro-life issues, I am convinced that this is what I was meant to do. We’re all here for a purpose, right? This is mine. Or at least part of it. I cannot imagine now not being like this, but am fully aware that many people are not. Why? I don’t think they’ve found their purpose yet.
So this is my message: If you’re one of those people, start exploring things NOW.
High school is the perfect time to start finding internships and making connections. If you’re older than that, you’re going to need to hit the ground running. Like now. Learn how to have integrity, and always give your best effort. Get summer jobs. Ask your teachers questions.
Don’t know what you love yet? Start with the process of elimination. Make a list of tons of jobs and cross out the ones you know you don’t want to pursue. Pray about it. Talk with a friend about your strengths and weaknesses, and how those will play into your future (your parents would be good at that too). Talk to people you know whose work looks interesting. Go to work with them. Read articles.
We were all put on Earth for a reason, and if you haven’t found that reason yet, you’re wasting time. Quite frankly, you’re wasting your life. God handed you a specific set of talents and gifts, and it’s your responsibility to figure out how to best use them. If you don’t, you’re basically throwing them in God’s face and saying “Thanks, but no thanks”. You’re missing out on some serious joy too.
One of the greatest joys in life is being confident in the fact that you are doing what God wants you to be doing. It’s beautiful. And it just feels right. Do you have what it takes to get there?
I’ve been babysitting quite a bit recently, and have been for several years. Because of this, I’ve experienced a wide range of family lifestyles. Sometimes it’s good, sometimes not. Oh my. But I stick with it. The people I babysit for are generally people I already know (though not all the time, sometimes a friend of a family we know). But every once in a while, I think there should be some sort of instruction manual for parents out there so as to avoid awkward situations and babysitter burn out. Here’s my take, from experience, on some things the parents of the babysat should know.
1. Please contact me with enough warning time.
I’ve been called and asked “Can you babysit tonight?”. Sometimes you’re in a pinch, but this really puts a babysitter on the spot. Please try to give me as much notice as possible so I can plan accordingly and not go crazy at the last minute.
I can see you, Calvin.
2. Your kids are not perfect angels, but I’m probably not going to tell you everything they did.
Your toddler ran around the house naked for half an hour because he didn’t want me to dress him, and you might not know about it. I don’t think this is a big deal, but if you want to know details like this, please ask. Kids don’t always listen to me (“Don’t grab that toy”, “Please finish eating _____” etc.) but I don’t know what is important to you to know. Instead of asking “How’d it go?” maybe ask specific questions like “Did So-And-So have a hard time at all?”, “Did they play nicely together?”, or “Did you have any trouble putting them to bed?”. Of course, only ask if it’s something you want to know. Kids are kids and don’t always get along, and I’ll tell you if anything major happened.
3. Please arrive home at the time you told me you would.
Arriving slightly early can be fine. Arriving late is honestly rather rude, unless you contact me and ask if I can stay later. Please take into consideration that I might have some sort of time constraint. Personally, I don’t like driving super late at night. And it’s really hard to stay awake sometimes when you’re gone for hours after the kids are in bed.
4. Please warn me about any pets you have.
I’ve babysat for a couple families who have pets (cats, dogs) and forgot to tell me about them ahead of time. It’s not the end of the world, especially since these were well-behaved pets. But it would have been a bad situation had I been allergic to them.
5. If you have a routine you want me to follow, please write it down.
When I’m new to a house and am told where everything is at once, plus when to put the kids to bed, and everything in between, it’s easy to forget a detail. How do you do dinner? Do you read books before bed? Say specific prayers? Brush the little one’s teeth for her? Just jot down the important details.
6. If you’re going to be out late into the evening, please let me know.
This goes along with #3. It’s hard to stay awake if you’re out significantly late into the night, especially if the kids go to bed early. If this is your plan, let me know so I can bring something to keep myself occupied.
7. It’s really much easier for me to babysit when you’re gone.
Not only is it slightly awkward to babysit when you’re here, but the kids will probably not want to listen to or play with me if they don’t know me well yet. If they’re younger, they probably won’t want to see you go. Spend a little time acquainting me with your house and kids, then skedaddle stealthily. Your kids will be okay if you hired a trustworthy babysitter. Honestly. I’m not a serial killer.
8. Ask me ahead of time about rates and preferred type of payment.
I’ll let you know my rates ahead of time, but I would really prefer if you were the one to ask. Personally, I would prefer to be paid with a check because I deposit it right into my bank account and it doesn’t get mixed in with my wallet. It doesn’t matter too much, but just talk about it ahead of time. And if it’s been a rough day, consider tipping a babysitter who has done a good job 🙂
That’s a wrap! If you have anything to add, let me know in the comment section!
Hey you! Has summer boredom gotten to you lately? Know people who are bored to death and don’t know what to do with themselves? Fear no more! Here is a list of ways to keep yourself busy collected from many online sources and people. Looking for more serious things to do? Check out these 10 pro-life waysto keep busy (or scroll to the end for specifically Catholic things to do).
After completing my freshman year at Benedictine, I’d like to think I’m a little smarter. Not just in an academic way (because academics are certainly not everything) but in an all-encompassing sort of way. My year was harder than I thought it would be in some respects, and easier in others. So, I thought I’d make some sense of my year by putting together my thoughts on it….enjoy!
Some of these things I’ve learned are totally obvious, some are totally true, and some are silly, but that’s what life is all about. Here’s a list excluding some of the more obvious and personal academic and spiritual things I’ve learned.
Let it go.
Perhaps the most recurring theme of my freshman year, letting things go was something I got plenty of practice in. I’ve always gotten annoyed at peoples little habits (chewing loudly, scratching weirdly, etc.) and there’s no exception with people at college. Everyone has their weird habits, and I still get annoyed by them, but I’ve learned letting them go makes for a much more peaceful existence. It’s hard a lot of the time, and sometimes I miserably fail, but it’s all about continuing to get better at it.
More so than annoying habits, there were countless events and such things that I could have completely freaked out about because they were terribly planned and/or obviously lacking in something. My spring break mission trip was a good example – not that it was lacking things, but that it was sooooo not how I would have planned it. So many things were like that, but I learned how biting my tongue is a better choice than annoying people all the time (especially since I’m not even right all the time).
Procrastination is a horrible, terrible, no good, very bad decision.
You’d think this was a duh. It was, but I never experienced real procrastination until college. I’m not going into details, but let’s just say it’s not a good idea to stay up until 3am writing something due at 9am. I really only procrastinated horribly a few times – it’s not an ingrained habit of mine, but it’s easy to resort to when I know I can get something done in a short amount of time. The problem is I can’t get it done super well in a super short amount of time. Solution? Just do things ahead of time gosh darn it.
Caf food is _________
I’m not really sure what to say about this one except that I’m really looking forward to having a smaller meal plan next year (12 instead of 18 a week). Salads and quesedillas get old quickly when you can’t tell what’s for dinner.
TV is a total and complete waste of time.
I’m not an avid follower of any show, so I didn’t miss the television very much. Actually, I was happy to NOT be around a tv all the time. We did have one in our basement, but we only watched it a few times (when Pope Francis was elected was one of them). My roommates we used for Wii sometimes. How wonderful to not have another distraction! Though I have to say we did get into a few shows on Netflix as the year progressed (Nanny 911 for example). We weren’t bad about it, and I thoroughly enjoyed not being around a screen often.
This is what my children will look like 🙂
Nutella
…is amazing! I can recall having it maybe once before college, but it became a staple in my pantry.
I need an editor
Funny thing? I misspelled that title. I’m not a terrible speller, nor do I think my grammar is sorely lacking, but I do make typos. I re-write words I don’t need to, and put letters in the wrong order. At school I often would ask someone to look over my post before publishing it, but if you read something with some glaring mistake, it’s probably because no one did.
Who you hang out with matters
We’re shaped by the people we associate with. I’ve met lots of awesome people and can’t wait to get to know them better over my next three years at BC.
Home is not really home anymore
The house my parents and siblings (and me too!) live in will always feel like home, but it’s a different kind of home. I bring stuff home and then take it back to school. It feels more temporary.
Floppy camel humps are freaky
‘Nuff said.
Planners save lives
Not quite literally…..I actually googled “my planner saved my life” to see if this legitly has happened, to no avail. Darn it! But seriously, I would have missed so many events without my planner.
Most things we freak out about are not important
Need I say more? People just need to chill and pray more (me included of course).
I am choleric through and through
Don’t know the four temperaments? Look them up! It’s really helpful to understand why people function the way they do.
If you don’t know what you’re doing, pretend you do – people will think you know what you’re doing and guess what? Maybe you do!
I’m not one to advocate for flying by the seat of your pants, but hey! That’s not to say we shouldn’t be adventurous sometimes 🙂
Suuuuunshiiiine!
Kansas needs to get with it and have more sunshine….this was something I missed big time being for sunny CA.
It’s way too easy to have conversations when you’re supposed to be working on something.
There were many (AWESOME) nights where I’d be up later than planned because my friends and I had long conversations about a bajillion different things. Would I change that? Nope. It was awesome.
Look at your day as a work day. Work hard from 9 – 5 so you can have the night off.
This was something I heard in a speech, and I like it! It’s definitely something I’ll try to integrate into my life more next school year.
I really do need to sleep
Never, ever did I see myself as one of those people who had to have a certain amount of sleep. Until this past year…5 hours just doesn’t cut it. It was kind of weird because I did best when I had slept for a solid 7 1/2 hours or less than 5 hours (probably then because I was so tired I didn’t realize it). If it was somewhere between those, I was exhausted.
Be awesome
There are so many people in college (and BC is a pretty small school) – you’ve gotta find your place in the world and own it.
It’s easy to get comfortable at a nice Catholic school, but you’ve gotta step outside your comfort zone.
I wouldn’t trade my experience at BC for much. I believe it’s invaluable to attend a good Catholic college. However, I think it can be dangerous for someone who doesn’t step outside their comfort zone to engage the world and gain life experience off campus too. Sometimes I wish BC were a little more diverse so everyone didn’t agree with me most of the time. I get plenty of that from the rest of the world, though, so I think I’m fine 🙂
Ravens know how to have fun
And our kind of fun does not involve many things the typical college student’s would. We do lip syncing competitions, slime slides down a hill, skits, hilarious talent competitions, and SO much more. We revel in honest to goodness fun that’s not going to get anyone in trouble. I’m good with that!
And lastly, I know that Benedictine is the place I’m meant to be, I will grow so much more in the coming years, and that my adventure as a Raven has only just begun!
A Drop in the Ocean 